If your loved one is planning on wrist surgery due to arthritis or another injury, helping her recover afterward will go better if you plan. The surgery is often done as same-day surgery, and your loved one will return home to recover from her surgery in the comfort of her home. While being home makes recovery more pleasant and provides a safe and comfortable place to recover, your loved one will need to have some adjustments made around her home to help her recover time. Hiring in-home rehabilitation care services can help them through the process.
Wrist Surgery Recovery Timeline
The structure of the hand might be altered during surgery, requiring your loved one to relearn how to use her hand and fingers. It often takes 6-8 weeks before everything is fully recovered and functional. The first few days will require careful positioning and a lack of movement of the affected hand/wrist, with motion and exercise being slowly added back into the routine.
Key Areas Your Loved One Will Need Help with After Wrist Surgery
Wound and Pain Management. Directly after the surgery, your loved one may need extra help with wound care and/or pain management. Follow the doctor’s orders exactly for how to keep her surgical area clean and healthy. She will have appointments within days to have it reviewed and monitored by her doctor. For pain, she might use a combination of pain-reducing medications as well as cold compresses.
Driving. If your loved one is still driving, she will need help with transportation for up to 12 weeks. If she is living alone, this may mean needing to learn the public transportation system, paying for ride services, having family drive her places, and/or having an in-home rehabilitation care provider help with transportation.
In-Home Rehabilitation. Because driving will be difficult and your loved one will need rehabilitation, you might want to consider having an in-home rehabilitation specialist come to her home. In-home rehabilitation will let your loved one receive the rehabilitation she needs without having to worry about how to get to the clinic and back. Another perk of in-home rehabilitation is that the specialist can provide insight into how your loved one can manage her specific home environment as she is in rehabilitation.
Home Chores. The hands and wrists are used for just about everything around the home, from folding laundry to slicing up veggies. While your loved one’s in-home rehabilitation team will help her manage her home, she will still need help from someone directly for a few weeks. Creating premade meals that just need to be heated up, and having someone like a senior care provider weekly to assist with laundry and cleaning can also be advantageous to your loved one’s healing time.
Lifting and Carrying. Strenuous tasks will need to be avoided for months. Heavy items that need to be carried or moved should only be done by others, and strenuous home tasks such as shoveling or mowing the lawn should also be sourced out to someone else.
Strength Building. As she progresses in her recovery, having an in-home rehabilitation provider come to the home to help her practice the necessary strength-building exercises as well as monitor her progress will be one of the most important tasks in having a full recovery from her surgery. She may also choose to visit her clinic for her rehabilitation or have some done at home and some at the doctor’s office.
If you or an aging loved one are considering In-Home Rehabilitation Services in Delray Beach FL, please get in touch with the caring staff at Star Multi Care today. Call 954-962-0926
Star Multi Care is a Trusted Home Care Agency in Florida including Palm Beach, Miami Dade, and Broward County.
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